New York Giants 2018 Mandatory Minicamp Preview

SportsMoney
I have covered the New York Giants since 1994 for various outlets.

New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning and company are set to take place in their first mandatory minicamp under head coach Pat Shurmur. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

The New York Giants will wrap up their spring football activities this week with their annual three-day mandatory minicamp beginning Tuesday.

While the rules of the camp aren’t much different compared to the 10 OTAs the team completed last week—the only significant rule is that the minicamp is mandatory whereas the OTAs were voluntary--there are still several storylines that will take center stage as the team wraps up its spring practices.

Here is a look at some of those stories.

Odell Beckham Jr.

The wide receiver hasn’t put in perfect attendance at this year’s voluntary workouts, but unlike last year when he chose to train out in California, Beckham has put in several appearances in East Rutherford even though his contract situation hasn’t been resolved.

In fact, last week head coach Pat Shurmur said that Beckham, who continues to rehab from a broken ankle, was “getting close” to being fully cleared for full football activities.

While it’s unlikely that Beckham will be cleared this week—there is no rush to get him back on the field in team activities right now—there is still the matter of his contract, in which he’s currently set to enter the option year of his rookie deal.

Beckham, who in a stream of conscious thoughts in a video posted last summer for Uninterrupted in which he expressed his hope that one day he “will be not just the highest paid receiver in the league, but the highest paid (player) period,” has been as focused as ever on ensuring that he puts himself in a position to become the tops in his field.

But other than a brief appearance on the red carpet at the NFL Honors show in February in which he expressed a desire to get his deal settled sooner than later so he doesn’t have to continue thinking about it, has not directly commented on his contract situation with the Giants since, despite a NFL Network report in March claiming that the receiver “will not set foot on a football field” unless an extension is agreed to.

The Giants, as has been their practice, do not comment on player contracts. Beckham, meanwhile, has yet to address the media this spring and its unclear if he will do so (though the odds of him finally talking to the media appear good what with his upcoming football camp for youth which will be held this weekend).

The most logical scenario regarding his contract is that if it is meant to get done this year, the Giants will likely wait until training camp progresses in order to see where Beckham is at physically before ramping up negotiations.

Beckham likely won’t partake in any preseason games as he continues to rehab, but the Giants no doubt want some reassurance that he still is capable of doing all the football-related things that make him so unique before they invest gobs of guaranteed money in him.

The Walking Wounded

Beckham isn’t the only Giant who is unlikely to be cleared to participate in the three-day minicamp. Safety Landon Collins, fresh off his annual charity softball game, told reporters last week that while his broken arm is ahead of schedule, there was no rush to get back on the field now with nothing to play for. Collins figures to be cleared and ready to go by training camp.

Others who have been unable to practice this spring due to physical ailments include defensive end/outside linebacker Avery Moss (unknown) and fifth round draft pick R.J. McIntosh (undisclosed medical condition). It’s unlikely that both will be cleared for the three-day camp, but the hope is that both will be ready for training camp.

A Faster Pace

Phases 2 and 3 of the offseason program are primarily designed for the coaches to teach the players new schemes and concepts. While the teaching will continue into the summer, expect the pace of everything to be turned up a notch.

This anticipated quicker pace will help the coaches determine a couple of things, starting with how well the players are grasping concepts (the better they grasp it, the faster they will practice). It will also allow the coaches to get a better idea of what’s working and what isn’t.

Running Game

Rookie draft pick Saquon Barkley continues to dazzle both the Giants and onlookers every time he takes the field, but the plan for the rest of the running backs is still somewhat in the air.

Will, for example, Jonathan Stewart be the change-of-pace back? Will Wayne Gallman get the third-down back role?

And how exactly will Barkley be used? Will he get a lot of pass targets? Will he predominantly be sent on outside runs?

Most important of all: regardless of how the running backs are deployed, will they actually be able to get everything blocked properly?

The Offensive Line

All spring long, the Giants have been experimenting with different offensive line combinations, particularly along the interior where Jon Halapio has shared snaps with Brett jones, and the guards have consisted of any combination of Will Hernandez, John Greco and Patrick Omameh.

The early odds on favorites to win the starting jobs are Hernandez on the left and Omameh on the right, but the picture at center is a bit murkier given the surprisingly amount of first-team reps Halapio has received with the starting offensive line.

Meanwhile, Ereck Flowers continues to work at making the transition from left tackle to right tackle. So far so good on that front according to Shurmur, though remember that looking good in practice doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to transfer over to the playing field where the tempo reaches a feverish pitch.